The Peony Lantern 2010
by MissTeak
Summary: We will be together forever and ever, Sesshoumaru.” Based off a very popular ancient Japanese ghost story, 'The Peony Lantern' or 'Botan Dourou', this mysterious, bone-chilling tale of karmic love beyond the grave is now retold in a modern context.
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Inuyasha or any of its characters. They belong to Takahashi Rumiko.

A/N: This oneshot is a response to Kai's 100 Ghost Stories challenge on , and I based this story off a very popular and well-known Japanese ghost story, "The Peony Lantern". The Japanese name is "Botan Dourou" or 「牡丹灯篭」. However, it is very different from the original story, so do not expect the same legend with the names "Sesshoumaru" and "Kagome" slotted in.

I hope you will like this.

**The Peony Lantern: 2010**

* * *

She was like no other girl he had ever seen in his life. Beautiful, talented, intelligent…she was everything he had ever asked for in a woman.

He had met her at an art gallery in Paris, where her works of art were among those on exhibition. Like her, her paintings were equally beautiful. Peonies were what she specialized in painting, and it was rare indeed, to find a young and talented artist who is keen on traditional paintings. That was what brought him to her; he had noticed the beautiful peonies in the picture. He loved peonies very much indeed.

Then he discovered that the artist was a Japanese girl.

So two natives in a foreign land, united by their love for peonies and painting, found solace in each other. He was on a 6-month study exchange program for his postgraduate degree in world art studies, while she was supposed to be based in Paris for the next three years. She appreciated his mature views and seriousness in his studies and future plans, while he respected the fact that she had so bravely embraced her passion for art despite it being an unconventional career in today's capitalistic society. She was a graduate in economics in Kyoto University, but had decided to pursue her true passion.

She stole his heart, and he found out he had managed to steal hers as well.

Time went by mercilessly, and he left Paris to return to Tokyo. But before he left, she made him a promise.

She told him she would see him again, no matter what happened.

Her promise, made with a smile and some tears, made him feel better about his departure. He could not really express his feelings for her verbally; it was just in his nature to be terrible at expressing his emotions.

But even when he went back to Tokyo, they kept in touch via email and snail mail. They talked about everything, from dreams and aspirations to ex-girlfriends and boyfriends and random topics like favorite recipes. She would send him pictures of her peony paintings – which were a fusion of contemporary styles and traditional designs. One photograph for each month, and he would stick them at his study desk. Three years…he would just have to be patient and collect 36 pictures.

She would always tell him, "I will definitely come back to meet you."

So even when he completely stopped hearing from her after a day in the winter of her second year in Paris, he held on to her promise. She must have been too busy; after all, she did mention that she would be participating in another exhibition in Lyon.

Day after day, he checked his email and mailbox, only to end up disappointed.

Once again, time passed him by like a scornful stranger, while he stubbornly held on to her promise. He sent emails and letters once a week, and tried dialing her apartment phone number. But no, there was no sweet, feminine voice on the other end speaking in heavily-accented French. Instead, all he heard was a French man's voice, and he found himself hanging up.

So he tried to ignore what was the seemingly obvious fact – she had found a French boyfriend in Paris, and had cut off all ties with him. After all, he had heard the voice of a French man over the phone. Yet a part of him still pined for her. Never had he gotten along so well with a girl in his entire life, and he realized just how much she meant to him.

Suddenly, the distance between them was no longer just physical. It was emotional as well. He had merely 23 pictures tacked to his little personal noticeboard.

But still, life had to go on. One can be happy, sad, angry…whatever. The world still spins.

For a while, life for him did go on without her. Another year went by, and it was soon approaching the three year mark. He knew she should be back in Japan any time from now. Yet, he did not hear from her.

Then one day, she came back into his life. Not exactly in the way he had anticipated it to be, but still, it happened.

It happened at a very ordinary setting. He'd never have expected something like that.

It was his half-brother's birthday party, and as part of the family, he was sitting around talking to random guests, making small talk and secretly feeling bored.

Then he got lucky, for he met this guest named Tsuda Kazumasa who was doing his postgraduate studies in Museology, with a focus on contemporary art. It was rare to find someone with similar interests and passion, and he found himself engaged in a very lively and enriching conversation with the other man.

"So, do you have any particular themes which you appreciate in art? I am particularly fond of emotional themes."

He did not even ponder for a second. "Peonies."

Surprise had registered itself on the other man's face as he contemplated the answer. "Peonies…that's a rare one. There aren't many Japanese artists who still embrace this traditional theme for their paintings. There was one whom I knew personally, but…"

"I know of one. In fact, I know her personally." It was painful to even think about her, but he shoved the unhappiness aside. "I can show you some of her works."

So he took a few of the photographs of her paintings out of his wallet.

"What do you think of these works?"

Yet upon seeing the photographs, Tsuda's eyes widened before narrowing again in a wistful expression.

"What a coincidence. It's her, alright. I can recognize her contemporary style of portraying ancient art anywhere. We were acquaintances during our university days." He nodded as he flipped through the small stack of photographs in his hands, looking at them one by one. "Beautiful, aren't they? It's such a shame…"

His facial expression must have been questioning, for Tsuda quickly asked, "If I am not wrong, these works were created by a very talented young artist named Higurashi Kagome? Shoulder-length wavy black hair, big round eyes, petite stature, graduated from Kyoto University with a degree in economics?"

He nodded with a faint smile on his lips. Her name always sounded so beautiful to him. "Yes, that's her. I met her while I was on my study exchange in Paris. She should be back in Japan by now, in fact. After all, she did mention that she would come back after spending three years in Paris."

Silence hung heavily in between the two young men.

"…you haven't heard about it?"

The sudden change in the atmosphere was unsettling, and he asked cautiously, "Heard what, exactly?"

"She won't be coming back to Japan." The other man said. "She's…no longer around."

"What do you mean by that?" By now, formalities were the last thing on his mind. It was getting more and more confusing.

"…Kagome is dead."

He thought his hearing had failed him.

"What?"

Then Tsuda went on to give details, details which he never ever thought he would hear.

"She died last winter, in a car accident along a highway."

_Died._

_She died._

The rest of the evening passed in a blur. He felt as if someone had plunged him underwater, and all sounds of conversations and laugher around him seemed like they were coming from ten miles away.

It was only when he got back to his own apartment, did he realize the party was long over.

All he remembered was vehemently denying what that Tsuda guy said.

Firstly, there was denial. He refused to believe the man.

Then logic kicked in, and he realized the pieces of the puzzle did fit nicely. There was no other reason for her to stop contacting him all of a sudden, especially when everything was going so smoothly between the two of them.

So that was why she stopped contacting him. It wasn't as if she did not want to. Rather, she could not, because she died.

_Died._

It was…finality. What a brutal word.

For a long time, he sat at his study desk, staring at the pictures of the peony paintings by her. How beautiful the peonies had been in their full bloom, just like her. They live so splendidly for a fleeting period, before dying so abruptly.

Then he heard the all-too familiar new mail alert from his computer.

He told himself he should stop thinking about her. After all, it had been a year since they lost contact with each other, and he had coped with life pretty well since then. But of course, he had not imagined that she would be dead. He would rather live with the thought of her living blissfully in Paris with her new boyfriend, pursuing her dreams.

There was something wrong with the computer screen. It was all blurry.

Then he realized it was a thin film of tears which had clouded his vision. He blinked it away, and clicked on the mail alert box.

A new tab with his inbox was opened, and what came into view made his heart skip a beat and the hairs on his back literally stand on their ends.

For staring back at him was an email from her.

_Higurashi Kagome._

His finger clicked on the mouse, and the email was opened. His eyes scanned the words, wondering if it was some kind of sick spam, but all he saw was as such:

"Dear Sesshoumaru,

Three years isn't really as long as it seems, is it? I promised you before you returned to Japan, and…

I am back.

Love,

_Kagome_."

A chill ran down his spine, but he chose not to think about it. After all, it was technology. No one should ever trust technology fully.

Yes, technology must be playing a prank on him.

He tried to convince himself, and he succeeded in doing so.

The next night, she came to him.

He couldn't say for sure if it was she who came to him or the other way round, for he saw her along the streets as he was on his way home.

The night was cold, almost uncomfortably so. He bent his head down to avoid the wintry winds that were blowing right into his face, and he failed to see the person walking towards him from the opposite direction.

"Sesshoumaru?" The voice was uncertain, but it held elation within.

His head snapped up at the sound of the familiar voice. Disbelief, joy and fear clouded his senses at the same time upon laying eyes on the individual in front of him.

"…Kagome?"

She was as beautiful as ever, even though she did look a little tired and pale.

The smile she graced him with took his breath away, and left a painful longing and disturbing realization within his heart.

_I must be missing her so badly; I am beginning to hallucinate,_ he thought. He figured what he really needed was a hot bath at home.

So he strode forward, intending to ignore the illusion. It was painful to even look at it, and it was merely a figment of his imagination.

"Sesshoumaru, where are you going?"

A hand gripped his, and he whirled around to see her hand wrapped around his wrist. It was a solid, warm wrist, and panic took over his senses before he reflexively pulled away from her hold. This was real.

And if this was real…then this girl standing in front of him should be a…

"Get lost! You…who are you?" He asked with disbelief, fear and hostility in his voice.

"What?"

"Who the hell are you?"

She looked at him incredulously, while those eyes of creamy chocolate danced with mirth. She laughed, "Are you kidding? You just called me by my name a moment ago, and now you're asking me who I am? Sesshoumaru, are you alright?"

The confusion was threatening to disorientate him.

In his confusion and fear, blunt words tumbled out of his mouth. "You're supposed to be dead."

"Dead? What are you talking about?" Her beautiful eyes dulled over with a cloud of sadness, and a hurtful expression found its way on her features. "I can't believe you'd say that…that's really a very, very mean thing to say! I mean…we've only separated for three years, and you're telling me I am dead to you?"

Tears welled up in her eyes, and he stood rooted to the spot, watching as two droplets of tears rolled down her cheeks.

She sniffled, "I came back all the way to Tokyo for you, intending to look you up tomorrow when I am settled down. To think I was elated to bump into you here…all you could say was how I am supposed to be dead? I overestimated you, Sesshoumaru."

"…your friend from Kyoto University…Tsuda Kazumasa…he told me you were dead." He said slowly, pondering every single word as they found their way past his lips. "You were killed in a car accident…"

Realization seemed to dawn upon her, for it was all written all over her face. She drew in a deep breath and calmed down considerably, drawing the back of her hand over her watery eyes.

"Oh…how quick he was to jump to conclusions!" She chastised softly, before her soulful eyes sought his again. "He got half the story right; I was indeed involved in a car accident in winter, and was very, very badly injured indeed. I spent a long, long time in the intensive care unit in hospital…which was perhaps why Tsuda got the wrong idea…"

Sesshoumaru found himself releasing the breath of air he had been holding back, and watched silently as it formed a pretty cloud in the chilly air.

"So…you're not dead?"

A smile broke out on her angelic face. "You silly boy…I most certainly am not!"

With that, she ran into his embrace, and as he felt the solid, albeit petite and frail, frame in his arms, he realized everything had been nothing but a misunderstanding.

Laying butterfly kisses all over her mesmerizing features, breathing in her floral scent and holding her tightly, Sesshoumaru swore to himself never to let her go.

Held snugly within his protective embrace, she smiled and looked up into his eyes. "We will be together forever and ever, Sesshoumaru."

Together…

_Forever._

_

* * *

_

_To be continued…_

A/N: Awww. Do drop a review to tell me what you think about this! I sincerely hoped you guys enjoyed it. The story will end in the next chapter! I wouldn't be answering any questions as of now, since it will take all the fun out of the story.


	2. Chapter 2

Standard disclaimers apply.

A/N: Thank you to those who reviewed the first chapter! Here's the second and final part to this story. It's angst-friendly, I think, depending on how you perceive it.

**The Peony Lantern 2010**

* * *

So she moved into his apartment, and it was bliss like he had never experienced. They had gone through so much together; this was the happiness they deserved.

He loved seeing her sleepy expression in the morning, the way she laughed as she watched television, and the way she paints her favorite peonies in deep concentration.

But as the novelty of living together naturally wore off after three weeks, Sesshoumaru began noticing things he could not explain. The magic surrounding Higurashi Kagome gradually faded, and he came to a silent, reluctant conclusion.

There was something very wrong with Kagome.

For some strange reasons, she did not like to go out in the day. Neither did she like crowded places. On the rare occasions when she did, she would keep a distance from him in public and walk in silence, refusing to engage in conversation.

She was growing to be disturbingly antisocial. He had asked her about her family, and while all she mentioned was how everyone was well and happily living at their shrine-home, she had evaded his suggestions to pay her family a visit together. Neither had she been willing to visit his family; all she had insisted on was how awkward it might turn out to be.

There was another incident which left him rather perplexed. It happened a few days ago, and he could still recall the details…

"_I'll be meeting up with a couple of friends from grad school next week_."

"_That's nice." She commented, busying herself with folding the freshly laundered clothes._

"_My friends would like to meet you, Kagome. They will be coming over tomorrow evening, so perhaps we can go to the supermarket before that to get some ingredients to whip up a decent dinner. French cuisine would be good, especially since I told them you used to-"_

"_No!" Her voice was panic-stricken, and she clapped her hand over her mouth in horror. Her hands stopped their task._

_His eyes widened at her outburst. "French food is not to your liking?"_

"_No, I mean…no, they can't come! They shouldn't come."_

_Annoyance started to nibble at his insides; Sesshoumaru was never known to be the most patient man with things he could not comprehend. "What do you mean by 'shouldn't come'? They are my friends, and they're all decent people, if that's what you're worried about."_

_Her face was a total mask of distress by now, and it was only throwing him into greater confusion._

"_I…I don't open up easily to people…I will be very, very uncomfortable." Her words reflected her discomfort and uneasiness, and it became too obvious to Sesshoumaru that she was lying. "If you really want them around, then…I…I'll leave the apartment and come back when they are gone. You can enjoy dinner with them."_

He figured that she had to be really averse to the idea of meeting his friends, or she would not have said something so extreme. It wasn't as if he could understand why she was acting so strangely, but he did not want to upset her.

So the topic was left untouched, and the venue of the gathering was changed to someone else's place.

Then there was once when she had appeared behind him with a face towel as he was washing his face at the face basin.

"_Here, your face towel."_

_He stood up straight from his bent over position at the face basin, trying to prevent the drops of water from falling all over the front of his shirt, and looked into the mirror to give her a smile._

_But what greeted his eyes made his heart skip a beat. He barely stifled a cry of surprise and the momentary shock caused him to reflexively distance himself from her, even though his knees had gone weak. His hands fumbled, and the mug containing his toothbrush and toothpaste was accidentally shoved to the ground._

"_Sesshoumaru? What's wrong?" She hurriedly asked, putting her hands on his arm before bending down to pick the fallen items off the floor._

_He breathed heavily, staring at nothingness before turning to look at her fully. His eyes had been filled with fear and distrust, before slowly raising his fingers to her face and cupping a cheek._

"_What happened?" Her face was a mask of worry and concern; her voice quiet._

"…_nothing." He muttered, and took the face towel from her. _

_How did you tell the girl you loved that you just saw a horrifying reflection of her in the mirror? Dark, soulful eyes in a pale, gaunt face with multiple cuts, complete with maroon, coagulated blood against lifeless skin?_

"_Are you really alright?"_

"_I said, it was nothing." He released the breath he had been holding for awhile, and strode out of the bathroom._

As if those two incidents were not enough, there was a third one which sent his mind spiraling into dilemma.

_His stepmother Izayoi had kindly prepared a pot of home cooked soup for him, and brought it up to his apartment along with groceries and some new clothes which she had bought for him. They had been watching TV together on the couch when the doorbell rang._

_He went over to look through the peephole in the door, before turning back to the girl who was still sitting on the couch._

"_It's my stepmother, Izayoi."_

_With that he opened the door to welcome the older woman in, but as he turned around to make the basic introductions, he realized that the living room was empty. Kagome was no longer on the couch. Leading his stepmother into the kitchen where she busied herself with placing the pot of soup into the refrigerator, Sesshoumaru hurriedly made an excuse to leave the kitchen. He entered each room and checked if the washroom had been occupied, but there was no living soul in sight. Kagome was gone, in a matter of seconds._

"_Sesshoumaru, my, my, you're really good at keeping the place neat and tidy!" Izayoi smiled as he entered the kitchen, failing to notice the perplexed expression on his face. "If I did not know better, I'd think you have a girlfriend helping you with the chores!"_

_He chose to remain silent with a half-hearted smile, and evaded his stepmother's concerned gazes when she pointed out that he was looking very tired._

_It was only after Izayoi left, when Kagome reappeared at the door._

"_Where did you go?"_

"_I went out." She smiled a little too brightly, walking past him to enter the apartment._

"_How?" He was genuinely perplexed. How could she have simply…disappeared like that?_

"_I…I snuck out when you guys were busy in the kitchen." She tried to explain, but he was quick to add._

"_Without even saying hi? Or bye, for that matter."_

"_It would have been awkward."_

"_Awkward? It is not as if you are an illegal immigrant." He said heatedly, watching her face freeze into an expression of uneasiness. "Are you hiding something from me, Kagome? Is there anything I should know?"_

"_I'm tired, Sesshoumaru. I want to rest." With that, she had strode back into the room they shared, and was asleep by the time he went into the room, even though he knew she was probably feigning._

Now, Sesshoumaru was staring at his computer screen in a mixture of what he could best describe as disbelief and realization. Staring back at him was an email from Tsuda, the guy he met at the party, and attached to the mail was an article from Kyoto University's department of Economics titled…

"_Ex-student dies in fatal car crash in Paris."_

There was also a message from Tsuda. _"Hey Sesshoumaru...I know this is not easy to accept, but it's the truth. I wasn't lying when I told you Higurashi-san had passed away. But since I am your friend, and you're Inuyasha's brother, I wouldn't want to see you hold on to the false hope of Higurashi-san coming back."_

The box within the columns of words was framing none other than her face. His heart sank into the pits of hell, and it felt like someone had ripped it out and stabbed it viciously. Cold perspiration broke out over his skin, while a drop of moisture ran down his temple to roll off his face at the point of his chin.

He couldn't think properly. If Kagome was…dead, then who was the girl sleeping in his bed every night? She was just reading in the bedroom beside the study room in which he was currently in.

So he did something which he knew he might regret later, but rationality insisted it had to be done.

He grabbed his car keys, though his fingers were trembling from fear.

And sped straight towards a certain shrine in downtown Tokyo the moment he started the car engine, without telling her where he was going.

But as his car sped out of the basement parking lot of the apartment building, he failed to see her standing at the window of the bedroom, watching his car turn around the corner with eyes filled with melancholy.

The headlights of cars on the roads, traffic lights and the flashing neon from signboards passed him in a kaleidoscopic, depressing blur, before he found himself outside the shrine in which she was raised.

He ran up the stone steps two steps at a time, before coming to the front of the shrine. His mind was whirring, and all he recalled was an expression of surprise as an older woman with Kagome's features met his eyes.

"Excuse me, you are…?"

"Kagome," That was all he could say as his emotionally-laden mind struggled to function. "I…Kagome…where is she?"

The woman's eyes narrowed and grief peeked from underneath the apparent annoyance. "Is this some sort of sick joke, young man? If it is, please leave immediately. This is…this is not funny in the least."

"No, I am serious." He tried to reason. "Look, I don't know how to put this…but she's with me, and I got the news that she has passed away, but…I see her. I am Sesshoumaru, and I got to know her in 2007 when we were in Paris."

The facial expression on the older woman softened, and she said in a quiet voice. "I see her all the time as well. In my mind, in my heart, in my dreams. My poor, poor child."

He watched as sorrow engulf the woman, who evidently was Kagome's mother, only to look up in surprise as she called out to him.

"Young man…if you are a friend of Kagome's, won't you come in and pay her a visit? She'd be so happy to see you."

So dumbly he followed Kagome's mother, until he came to an altar with a little photo frame with Kagome's face. There was an incense stick burning silently in front of the picture, while fresh white chrysanthemums were arranged neatly in a vase by the side. Behind the photograph was an urn, and he did not know what to feel. It was clear that the urn contained her ashes, but how on earth could she be in his apartment, when he was staring at her ashes in an urn?

Kagome's mother knelt in front of the altar and said softly, "Kagome…look who's here. It's Sesshoumaru, he has come to see you."

For awhile he could not utter a single word; all he did was kneel in front of her altar in stony silence.

"Kagome…I….there are so many things I need to ask you about." He was not entirely lying when he said that. "If you can hear me, tell me what I need to know."

Everything went by in a blur. He did not know how he survived the shock and confusion, but he did, and he eventually found himself going back to his apartment. The truth was too clear; it was just up to him to believe or reject the absurd reality.

He opened the door to his apartment unit.

She did not even look surprised. In fact, she was sitting on the couch, awaiting his return.

He looked at her coldly, not trusting his jumbled emotions to dictate his actions.

"Is there something you need to tell me?"

"You already know it. I heard you when you were at the shrine." Her voice was trembling; indicative of the impending tears. "I'm sorry…I should go."

She turned to walk out of the door, but once again, his hand looped itself firmly around her wrist, preventing her from going further.

"Where are you going?"

"I don't know. Away from you, I guess."

"Do you know what you're saying? After all we've been through…"

"That should be my line! You don't get it, do you, Sesshoumaru?" Kagome wept bitterly as he refused to let go of her hand, her painful sobs escalating in high-pitched, breathy wails at times. "I don't belong to this place…and being with me will kill you!"

"Kagome…what are you talking about?" Deep down, Sesshoumaru faced up to reality. He realized a part of him sort of knew the truth all along; just that he was stubbornly refusing to believe it, as if that could change reality.

He should have known from the day she refused to see his friends, and how she mysteriously disappeared when his stepmother, Izayoi, kindly brought food, groceries and new clothes for him to his apartment. There was also the time when he saw her bloody reflection in the mirror. It was too uncanny, and until he saw the newspaper articles and the publication in the newsletter by Kyoto University did the silent acknowledgement of the truth took place.

Then her mother showed him her altar.

Yet oddly enough, he was not fearful in the least.

"I really, really wanted to take you with me. I knew it is wrong…your time in the living realm is not supposed to be up, but…" Her voice broke under the sorrow she was suffering from, but Kagome continued bravely.

"…I was so selfish. I wanted you to be by my side so badly. It's not fair, Sesshoumaru…that was what I kept telling myself. I had never done anything bad when I was alive. Why did life have to be so unfair as to do this to me? All I wanted was to be with the man I love…I wanted to come back to Japan and marry you one day…I wanted to live…"

He held her hands tighter, but somehow, they were becoming less solid to the touch. His fingers could brush over her porcelain skin as if they were merely tendrils of smoke, and her face looked paler than ever in her anguish.

"Instead, I died alone in Paris on a cold winter morning in the hospital's intensive care unit. There was nothing familiar around me…there were only tubes, machines, drips…I don't know." She continued sobbing. "…I was so scared. Somehow I could think, but my body was too battered…it felt like I was slipping down a dark tunnel, and I never came back up. I was so angry and upset after I died. I didn't even do anything wrong…I wasn't even driving…I was just sitting at the back, laughing at some joke when everything changed in a matter of seconds…"

"So I came back to you, and while I was really, really happy to see you again…it pained me to see you dying bit by bit. Everyone has been commenting on how tired you look…and it is not because you haven't rested enough. It's because of me; the closer we are, the more I drain your life force. Every kiss, every bit of contact…you will slowly die because of me-"

"And we will be together, should I die at your hands?"

She nodded as she cried harder, saying almost incoherently. "You must hate me for doing this…I am so sorry, I was only thinking of myself…"

"How can I hate someone whose only mistake lies in loving me?"

Then he pulled her into his embrace, and claimed her lips with his own.

It was a gentle, tentative brush of lips against lips, before he pulled away to whisper softly, "Together, forever and ever."

She looked into his eyes, and he saw forever within her taupe orbs.

Two days later, the headlines of all the main newspapers in Japan were dominated by the mysterious case of a young man found dead on the bed in his apartment with an urn containing ashes clutched tightly within his arms. The urn had been reported by the deceased's family to be mysteriously missing hours before the corpse of the young man was discovered by his stepmother…

_

* * *

_

_The End._

A/N: Sad ending, I know. Do not ask me why he could touch Kagome and see her when she's supposed to be dead…this was how it was be in the original Botan Dourou legend. It sure was a bittersweet tale of karmic love that goes beyond the grave. I hope you guys enjoyed this one; please review!


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